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ITV Report

6 April 2012 at 6:56pm

Holidaymakers head to North Devon's beaches

Holidaymakers in Croyde enjoying the Easter break Photo: ITV News

It was a typical British seaside scene - families enjoying the glorious Westcountry coastline as the Easter weekend began with a generous helping of sunshine. There may have been a chill in the air and the need for a few extra layers but it seems you can't better Britain.

"I don't think it can be beaten really. We all like the beaches and the sea basically so we've got it all here. Why go abroad.." one holidaymaker told us. "Britain is best at the end of the day."

Tourists here were also reassured by the presence of RNLI lifeguards. Today was the first time this year that cover has been provided by the charity at Croyde and 16 other beaches in Devon and Cornwall.

Phil Hill from the RNLI told us: "The main thing is to realise that not all of the beaches are lifeguarded. There is just a select few and we always recommend at the RNLI that you go to a lifeguarded beach."

But even if conditions look as benign as today, it's always worth checking with the boys in red.

"We always recommend that people do come and speak to us before going into the water to find the safest place, what the surf's going to do." says Phil. "Obviously it's flat today but we've had numerous questions about when it's going to get better and obviously the safest place to go which is in between the red and yellow flags for swimming and body boarding at the black and white flags for surfing."